Middle Game

In this article we are going to discuss the true value of the pieces. The basic scale value for each piece is clear for every chess player; the queen is the highest rated piece, then rooks, bishops or knights and so on. However, as we all should know, the true value of pieces is given by the importance they have over the board.

Some time ago, we wrote about the common resource of sacrificing the exchange in order to change the character of the position drastically. These changes could be taking over the initiative, break your opponent’s defenses or they could just be positional sacrifices, for example sacrificing the exchange in order to obtain a superior pawn structure, or obtaining a strong outpost for a minor piece in the center.

The name Pavel Eljanov may not be the most famous among chess amateurs, perhaps because he is not seen very often at elite tournaments or because his games are rarely combinative games. However, GM Eljanov (now rated 2717) is a very strong player from Ukraine, part of the Olympic team, consolidated for years on the group above 2700.

Continuing our series of typical sacrifices, today we are going to discuss another very important and usual idea in the Sicilian Defense. Much like its brother, the piece sacrifice on d5, giving up the knight on f5 has more or less the same ideas and outcomes.

A good sacrifice is something that can completely change the evaluation of the position. It can save the game when you’re in trouble, or it can help you win when the positions are nearly equal. Most amateur chess players are afraid to sacrifice pieces because they don’t feel confident and don’t want to take any risks. Today we will discuss seven most common and important sacrifices that a player of any level should keep in mind.

The Sicilian Defence is known as one of the most aggressive openings. There are many forced lines that both sides usually need to know by heart and it’s not unusual to see black’s king left in the center. In most of the lines, both sides are eyeing the enemy king and tactical blows are very common.

It’s no surprise that majority of chess players have trouble understanding and correctly interpreting the typical middle game positions. Most chess players think that positional understanding is something that only the masters can effectively use to win games. This is quite an incorrect assumption. Any chess player can learn and effectively use the typical middle game positions. This article will give you the resources needed to achieve just that.

In today’s article we continue talking about basic ideas and sacrifices any chess player should be aware of. We have covered so far the very well known f7 (f2) and h7 (h2) sacrifices, the double bishop sacrifice and the sacrifice on b5 that occurs mostly in the Sicilian Defense.

Many openings, like the Alapin variation against the Sicilian, the Rubinstein (4.e3) versus the Nimzo Indian, the Panov Attack against the Caro Kan, have in common that, very often, white gets an isolated queen’s pawn in the middlegame and eventually, after exchanges, hanging pawns arise.